Freshly carved Kuska

[Scoffham]

Hey All. This is my first forum post, but i've been browsing the vast amount of info on here for quite some time!

Yesterday I carved this Kuska from a freshly felled birch tree, whilst I was making charcoal. I was just wondering what are peoples' opinions on the best method for letting this kuska dry with the lowest probability of splitting?

 

[craven]

hey mate, i'm no expert but i have been told that the thinner you can make it the less chance of cracking! good job by the way, i have also been having a go, my first attempt started to crack before i'd even finished carving but i kept going with it and it remains to be seen if the crack is terminal

all the best with it

 

[Wayland]

Hopefully someone like Robin will be along in a bit with some expert advice.

Great job by the way, far better than I could achieve I reckon.

 

[Scoffham]

I'd read that some kuska's split whilst carving, so I kept this one in a carrier bag when not being carved, in the hope that it would keep some moisture in!

 

[HillBill]

Keeping it in a plastic bag makes it dry slowly and greatly reduces the chance of splitting. Something like a ziplock bag with an inch or two left open, placed away from a heat source, out of direct sunlight should do the trick

 

[robin wood]

Nice kuksa.

Splitting is much more to do with how the blank was cut from the log and in particular if the centre of the tree is in the finished piece rather than how quickly or slowly it is dried. The most stable wood is well away from the centre of the tree, so ideally I split a log in half through the pith then axe away quite a bit of wood from the centre before starting to work on my piece.

Having said all that if you bring it straight into a very dry or windy environment it increases the chance of splitting so as other folks have said relatively slow drying is best. I would just stand it in a cool dry garage or similar but if it has to be somewhere warmer then in a bag is a good idea.

 

[Scoffham]

Cheers for the replies... After felling and crosscutting I did split down the pith, and removed about a quarter of an inch from the middle.. so fingers crossed!

I think I shall use the zip lock bag idea.. good suggestion!

 

[Pignut]

I always boil in strong salty water this should stop any cracking and render the Kuksa suitable for use

 

[HillBill]

How does that work then Pignut?

 

[Arth]

Maybe the salt sink into the wood making stronger. I've heard that archaeologist use sugar water to preserve wood, basically the water in the wood is replaced by sugar. Maybe it's the same effect?

 

[Harmony]

The salt is absorbed into the wood cells and makes it hygroscopic. The kuksa will draw moisture.

Harmony

 

[HillBill]

Thanks. ..

 

[TJRoots]

would that make anything you drink out of it taste salty though? cause i put salt in my tea once by mistake (thought it was sugar, i was young) and it was NOT a nice cuppa.